Error Code “Windows 10 isn’t activated after upgrading for free” – What is it?
Windows 10 isn’t activated error occurs when Windows users attempt to upgrade to Windows 10 for free and end up in a non-activated state. It is a Windows 10 activation error affecting PC owners who attempt to upgrade their Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 operating systems. A message box will appear with the following message: “Windows 10 isn’t activated after upgrading for free from Windows 7 SPI or Windows 8.1 update.”
Common symptoms of this error code include the following:
- Inability to upgrade for free to Windows 10
- The appearance of activation error code in the message box
Solution
Error Causes
To understand the cause of this activation error, users will need to understand activation within Windows. Activation is a process that allows Windows to verify that you are upgrading your operating system based on the Microsoft Software Licensing Terms. These terms specify, for instance, the number of devices upon which you can use Windows.
Once you have a genuine copy of Windows and you are following the terms mentioned earlier, you should be able to activate and complete the upgrade to Windows 10. However, the activation fails when these conditions are not met. Note also that the error may occur if users fail to upgrade to Windows 10 before reinstalling, requiring them to repeat the installation process by first going back to the previous version of Windows present on their system. Once the upgrade process is not done as should, you might encounter other Windows 10 errors such as error code 0xc0000142
If you see this error code, “Windows 10 isn’t activated after upgrading for free” proceed to rectify it using manual repair methods below.
Further Information and Manual Repair
To fix this activation error code in Windows 10, users will need to employ at least one manual repair procedure. This process can successfully be completed by non-technical Windows users. However, you may also consider getting assistance from a Windows repair technician if you are not certain you have the requisite skills needed to complete the manual repair tasks below.
The main methods to resolve the error code “Windows 10 isn’t activated after upgrading for free from Windows 7 SPI or Windows 8.1 update” is as follows:
Method One: Manually Activate Windows
If you attempted upgrading for free to Windows 10 and ended up with the activation error you will need to first perform a manual activation. Follow the steps below to complete the process.
- Step one: Tap or click the Start button
- Step two: Select Settings then Update & security
- Step three: Select Activation
- Step four: Once activation status is Connect to the Internet to activate Windows, click or tap Activate
The steps above enable users to successfully activate Windows 10 if the issue involves a connection problem. However, if Windows is not activated, it may mean your copy of Windows is not genuine. This may require you purchase a copy of Windows to rectify the issue. However, if you have a genuine copy of Windows proceed by applying the steps found in method two.
Method Two: Use Product Key to Verify Copy of Windows
A valid product key is one way you can verify your copy of Windows is genuine. This will enable you to complete activation and allow you to access the free upgrade to Windows 10. Follow the steps below.
- Step one: Click or tap the Start button
- Step two: Select Settings then Update & security
- Step three: Click Activation
- Step four: Select Change Product Key then type in the product key. (Ensure you type the 25 characters in the correct order.)
Method Three: Use an Automated Tool
Error codes in Windows often occur due to poor maintenance of one’s PC. To improve your system and reduce your machine’s risk of experiencing error codes, download a powerful automated tool. This tool is both powerful and user-friendly, making its benefits accessible to even the most non-technical Windows users.

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The first thing that would pop into my mind is that I have lost tons of work and that something in my hardware has gone very wrong and it is dead. Luckily that is not the case and this error means that due to Windows update drivers were not properly transferred due to some compatibility issues, maybe it was a corrupt update file, etc. Of course, the reason could be hardware malfunction as well, but if everything was working fine before the update, it is a software issue, and I must say it is a common one and fixable. Please keep reading this guide in order to fix the Device not migrated error.
Find device inside device manager, right-click on it, and choose properties. Go to the events tab and make sure that the device has migration issues.
You have now 3 options for updating the driver, you can do it manually, automatically, or with the driver installer. We will cover all 3 options so you choose which one best suits you.
OPTION 1: Manually.
Close the Properties tab, go to the device manufacturer website and download the latest driver, if there are no drivers there, the only executable installer for the device skip this step and try the other 2. After you have downloaded the driver package from the website, right-click on the device and choose update driver.
Now navigate to the folder where you have downloaded your driver package and update the driver. Reboot your system.
OPTION 2: Automatic update.
Close the Properties tab, right-click on the device and choose to uninstall.
Once the device is uninstalled, restart your system, and Windows will automatically search and install the latest driver for the device.
OPTION 3: Via driver installer.
If you have downloaded .EXE or executable driver installer from device manufacturers web site try installing it, if the installation fails, try using compatibility mode for the installer. Navigate where the installer is located, right-click on it, and choose properties. Go to compatibility TAB and try installing it with administrator privileges in Windows 8 mode.
Reboot your system after this step.
This should solve the issues, however, if the issue still persists, follow the next steps.
The scanning process and repair of files will take around 15 min. Leave it to finish completely, do not restart, work on the computer or shut it down while the process is active, and only after it is finished reboot your system.
Go to the Windows update tab and click on DOWNLOAD or click on check for updates for the latest Windows fix.


In the run dialog, type control panel and press enter to enter control panel, locate recovery and click on it.
Inside the recovery screen click on Open System Restore.
Choose a date when everything was working in order, the best bet is the date before Windows update and roll it back.
Click on date, and then on next.